Kansas Glaucoma Surgery

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Types of Glaucoma Surgery and Costs in Kansas – What You Need to Know Before You Agree to Surgery

Does anyone in your family have a history of glaucoma? If you answered yes, then you need to be aware of the risk you have of also developing glaucoma. Glaucoma is a disease that causes the eye to have quick and irreversible damage to the optic nerve. If left untreated, it can lead to blindness in the eye that it affects. There are hundreds of thousands of people who have glaucoma surgery each year in the United States. A lot of them are in the state of Kansas. One might think that there is just one type of glaucoma surgery, but there are actually several different ones: sclerostomy, laser trabeculoplasty, iridotomy, viscocanalostomy and several other less used types.

When you have a sclerostomy, the surgeon creates a channel for drainage in the eye that goes from the anterior chamber into right below the conjunctiva. There are two different types of the procedure you can get: penetrating and non-penetrating. Penetrating is when the drainage channel penetrates the anterior chamber and non-penetrating is when it doesn't. Laser trabeculoplasty is when the surgeon uses a laser below the iris in order to burn away parts of the trabecular meshwork so that it doesn't have any blockages. Iridotomy is a surgical procedure where the doctor makes various little holes in the iris. These holes can be created by a laser or in the traditional method. Viscocanalostomy is a surgical procedure that exposes the Schlemm's canal by creating a flap.

When it comes to the cost of having glaucoma surgery in Kansas, it really varies. First, it depends on the surgeon performing the surgery. Then it depends on the city where you live as some places are more expensive than others. Then you have to factor in the type of glaucoma surgery you are getting because some of the newer methods are going to cost more than the older and more traditional ones. Basically, if you do not have insurance, you can count on spending several thousand dollars per eye. If you do have vision insurance, you will not have to pay as much out of pocket.

Keep in mind that all surgical procedures carry a risk with them. However, the risks that come from having glaucoma surgery do not outweigh the risk of not having it. If you do not get the surgery, then you almost certainly will go blind in the affected eye. Complications from the surgery are not as bad as losing your eyesight.